𝐄𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐌𝐀 • 𝐬.𝐬

Chapter 7

"I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO BEN,"
Saul stated as he sat in the greenhouse, getting his dose of Zambaq whilst Anya was teaching.

"What don't you know?" Ben asked, focusing as he dabbed more on the wound, watching as Saul hissed.

"Well you see, in case you didn't know, I like Anya, like a lot, like so much that I feel like I'm some lovesick teenager. Well back then, I still was a lovesick teenager," he rambled, Ben smiling to himself as he looked up at him.

"Well we can all see it," Ben said with a chuckle, dipping the cloth into some more Zanbaq, "And she's loved you the whole time, thats obvious,"

Saul sighed, "You think?" He asked, groaning slightly when the Zanbaq was applied.

"You've been best friends for years, faced every issue together. Hell, you even raised a kid together," he said, "That brings people together,"

Saul smiled, trying to keep his hopes up. Once he got better, he was going to tell her how he felt, tell her that she meant everything to him.

From her lesson, Anya walked to the greenhouse and saw Saul sitting in the chair, Ben getting more Zanbaq ready.

"You're looking nice today Anya," Saul said, hissing slightly as more Zanbaq was applied.

She blushed slightly, looking down at her figure hugging red dress she had worn to the lesson.

"Just one more Saul," Ben promised, dipping the cloth into the Zanbaq and then onto his wound.

He exhaled shakily, Anya walking over and taking his hand. She looked at the black veins spreading over his back and she sighed.

It wasnt a good sign. She'd never seen anyone with injuries this bad before and it worried her. She was a generally anxious person but this made it all worse.

"Right, I'm going to get some more bandages," Ben said, standing up and looking at Saul and Anya.

He pulled his shirt down slightly, "How was your lesson?" he asked weakly and she could see how he was getting worse.

Before she could reply, Sky walked in, looking at Anya and Saul as they sat in the middle of the room. She helped him pull his shirt back on, hearing him exhale deeply as it touched his wounds.

"How bad is it?" Sky asked Saul breathed shakily, looking up at Sky.

When he didn't answer, Sky knew his answer. To him, they were his parents, they were the people that cared for him and loved him no matter what.

They gave up the last 16 years of their lives to raise him as their own and he had been grateful for every second.

"Is Professor Harvey gonna up your Zanbaq dose?" He asked desperately.

"He said it'd keep the wounds at bay unt-" Anya started and Saul cut her off with a sigh.

"Until it can't anymore," he looked between Sky and Anya, allowing her to help him up.

He hated having to rely on her, he hated having to rely on the woman he loved more than anything.

"Me and Anya can run the first year Spars, and you can take it easy until the battalion gets to the Burned Ones. What's the status?" Sky asked, his voice laced with desperation and a hint of fear.

Saul sat down again, letting out a deep sigh, "They've tracked it forty kilometers north of here," he said, his voice hoarse like he was in pain.

"They'll engage it soon Sky, don't worry," she said, despite the fact that she was worrying herself and Sky could tell.

"I have every confidence they will complete the mission," Saul said. "They will kill it, the only question is when,"

Sky furrowed his brow, "What do you mean?" He asked, looking between the two.

He saw them as parents and both of them had helped raise him like he was their own. He knew how they felt about each other and he hated this.

He hated seeing Silva in pain and he hated seeing neither of them able to tell each other how they feel.

"The uh, infection is spreading quickly now," he explained, not making eye contact with either one of them.

Even Anya didn't know this, and he told Anya nearly everything. But she wasn't angry because she knew why he didn't tell her, he didn't want to have to admit that he might die.

"When it reaches my heart-" he inhaled sharply, looking up at Sky.

"How long do you have?" Anya asked, her voice breaking as she looked at him. Her heart went as she looked at him, as she looked at the man she was in love with.

"I don't know," he stated, closing his eyes and looking down at the floor, "Not long,"

"So what do we do?" Sky asked, looking at Saul, his heart breaking.

"I've spoke to my seconds about the plans for your training and Anya is aware of my wishes for your future." Saul explained, walking up to Sky.

"I asked you a question," Sky said.

"And I am answering it Sky," he let out a shaky breath, "Soldiers have to have these conversations with the people that matter,"

"There has to be something else. I already lost one father, I can't lose another," Sky said. His voice breaking.

He didn't know the whole truth about his father's death or who his mother truly was and she didn't want to have to ruin this idyllic life he had.

"Anya and I will keep you updated on the battalions progress, do you understand?" He asked, looking up at Sky.

Sky weakly nodded his head before walking out of the door. Anya turned to Saul, looking at him with a sad face.

"I should have told you, I know, I know," he said but she cut him off, pulling him into a hug.

"It's okay, I'm not going to let you go," Anya whispered as she buried her head in his neck, trying not to hurt him in the process.

He melted into her embrace, knowing that she cared about him and wanted to keep him safe.

But he also felt guilty that she had to see him pike this, as a broken man.

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